Burglars broke into the house of a 60-year-old government official in south Delhi's Andrews Ganj on Sunday afternoon and stole cash and jewellery.

S Bharani, principal advisor in the Ministry of Agriculture, and her family members were not at home when the burglars struck. When
they were ransacking the house, the family members arrived and raised an alarm.

One of the burglars was overpowered by the neighbours while the other two managed to escape. They took some jewellery and other valuables worth over Rs. 3 lakh. The burglar who was caught was beaten up before he was handed over to the police.

A case of burglary was registered at the Defence Colony police station. The arrested burglar was identified as Mursaleen Khan, a resident of Jahangirpuri area in north Delhi. A Nokia mobile phone, some gold and silver jewellery items and an iron cutter were recovered from Khan. Bharani told the police that she and her husband had gone to her brother's house in Dhaula Kuan, while her son and daughter-in-law were in Shalimar Bagh.

"Around 2pm, she returned and found the iron lock of the main door broken and the gate locked from inside. They raised an alarm after which some neighbours and security guards arrived and surrounded the flat," according to the police.

"When Bharani along with her husband and maid went to the rear door of the house, two men rushed out and fled after pushing them. The third was overpowered by the neighbours when he attempted to escape from the front door," the officer said.